Thin tech gadgets popular at US show
Jan 13, 2004
When it comes to televisions, bigger is better. But for most other gadgets, thin is in. That is the consensus of electronics manufacturers and industry analysts in Las Vegas this week for the annual Consumer Electronics Show
When it comes to televisions, bigger is better. But for most other gadgets, thin is in.
That is the consensus of electronics manufacturers and industry analysts in Las Vegas this week for the annual Consumer Electronics Show. Roughly 110,000 visitors are gawking at wares ranging from a flat-screen television slightly bigger than Michael Jordan to a digital camcorder roughly as small as a Pez candy dispenser.
Rushing into the lucrative TV market are PC makers such as Hewlett-Packard and Gateway as well as obscure Chinese manufacturers.
Many are unveiling models taller than most of the people who watch them.
Samsung introduced an 80-inch plasma TV, the world’s largest flat-panel home television at four inches bigger than the plasma TV that South Korean manufacturer LG Electronics has promised for later this year. The Samsung monster is expected to debut next year.
Pricing remains up in the air but such sets will cost in the tens of thousands of dollars.
Samsung also introduced a television with a 57-inch liquid-crystal display set.
Manufacturing cost and complexity previously limited home-use plasma displays to under 65 inches, and LCDs topped out at about 46 inches.
Televisions such as Samsung’s six-foot, six-inch plasma model, analysts say, confer status and bragging rights –– similar to sport utility vehicles that continue to grow in girth.
“Why are people buying Hummers?†asked Tom Edwards, an independent consumer analyst in Middletown, New Jersey.
“The American public wants the biggest thing they can afford, whether it's a car or a TV.â€
As they get bigger, TVs are usurping functions of other devices, particularly computers and printers.
Best known for its printers, Epson introduced a pair of LCD projection televisions with built-in memory card slots, printer and a CD-rewritable drive so users can archive their photos to a CD by simply working the remote control.
Slated to ship in March, Epson’s 47-inch model will sell for about $3,499; the 57-inch model, $3,999. Other TVs on the 1.4-million-square foot trade show floor include Sharp’s Aquos, a 15-inch LCD with Wi-Fi connectivity, which allows users to tote the TV from room to room like a laptop computer.
The battery-operated set will retail for $1,800 when shipped in February.
Sharp introduced what it's calling the world's first line of LCD TVs with built-in TiVo-like digital video recording features and two PC-card slots. The slots let users record TV programming onto a portable hard drive or wirelessly connect to a home computer network. The 15- and 20-inch models will be available in the next quarter with suggested prices of $1,399 or $1,899.
Philips Electronics' MiraVision Mirror TV comes in a 17-inch, 23-inch or 30-inch LCD display, and the screen is set in a polarized mirror.
In a test lab with hidden cameras, Philips researchers said, users enjoyed watching morning news shows and traffic reports while brushing their teeth or shaving.
While televisions assume larger-than-life proportions, other gadgets are growing more powerful but shrinking in size.
Also introduced was a wireless, networkable DVD player from Linksys that would stream digital videos, photos, music or streaming radio to other entertainment devices at rates up to 54 Mbps using the 802.11g wireless networking standard.
Also, one little gadget, truth specs, claimed to put a truth detection voice analysis on the bridge of your nose by wearing eyeglasses.
They are expected to be available at the end of January for $400-$500.
CNN.com
That is the consensus of electronics manufacturers and industry analysts in Las Vegas this week for the annual Consumer Electronics Show. Roughly 110,000 visitors are gawking at wares ranging from a flat-screen television slightly bigger than Michael Jordan to a digital camcorder roughly as small as a Pez candy dispenser.
Rushing into the lucrative TV market are PC makers such as Hewlett-Packard and Gateway as well as obscure Chinese manufacturers.
Many are unveiling models taller than most of the people who watch them.
Samsung introduced an 80-inch plasma TV, the world’s largest flat-panel home television at four inches bigger than the plasma TV that South Korean manufacturer LG Electronics has promised for later this year. The Samsung monster is expected to debut next year.
Pricing remains up in the air but such sets will cost in the tens of thousands of dollars.
Samsung also introduced a television with a 57-inch liquid-crystal display set.
Manufacturing cost and complexity previously limited home-use plasma displays to under 65 inches, and LCDs topped out at about 46 inches.
Televisions such as Samsung’s six-foot, six-inch plasma model, analysts say, confer status and bragging rights –– similar to sport utility vehicles that continue to grow in girth.
“Why are people buying Hummers?†asked Tom Edwards, an independent consumer analyst in Middletown, New Jersey.
“The American public wants the biggest thing they can afford, whether it's a car or a TV.â€
As they get bigger, TVs are usurping functions of other devices, particularly computers and printers.
Best known for its printers, Epson introduced a pair of LCD projection televisions with built-in memory card slots, printer and a CD-rewritable drive so users can archive their photos to a CD by simply working the remote control.
Slated to ship in March, Epson’s 47-inch model will sell for about $3,499; the 57-inch model, $3,999. Other TVs on the 1.4-million-square foot trade show floor include Sharp’s Aquos, a 15-inch LCD with Wi-Fi connectivity, which allows users to tote the TV from room to room like a laptop computer.
The battery-operated set will retail for $1,800 when shipped in February.
Sharp introduced what it's calling the world's first line of LCD TVs with built-in TiVo-like digital video recording features and two PC-card slots. The slots let users record TV programming onto a portable hard drive or wirelessly connect to a home computer network. The 15- and 20-inch models will be available in the next quarter with suggested prices of $1,399 or $1,899.
Philips Electronics' MiraVision Mirror TV comes in a 17-inch, 23-inch or 30-inch LCD display, and the screen is set in a polarized mirror.
In a test lab with hidden cameras, Philips researchers said, users enjoyed watching morning news shows and traffic reports while brushing their teeth or shaving.
While televisions assume larger-than-life proportions, other gadgets are growing more powerful but shrinking in size.
Also introduced was a wireless, networkable DVD player from Linksys that would stream digital videos, photos, music or streaming radio to other entertainment devices at rates up to 54 Mbps using the 802.11g wireless networking standard.
Also, one little gadget, truth specs, claimed to put a truth detection voice analysis on the bridge of your nose by wearing eyeglasses.
They are expected to be available at the end of January for $400-$500.
CNN.com